The Book:
Too Good To Be Real by Melonie Johnson
Published July 6th 2021 by St. Martin’s Griffin
Date read: July 7, 2021
The Characters:
Julia
Luke
Buy it on Bookshop.org | Amazon
The Plot (from Goodreads):
While her friends wish for meet-cutes worthy of their favorite rom-coms, Julia is ready to give up on love. Swiping right has replaced getting swept off your feet and good old-fashioned romance has become, well, old-fashioned.
A writer for a popular website, love becomes the last thing on her mind when impending layoffs threaten her job. As Julia searches for the ultimate pitch to impress her boss, she stumbles upon a resort offering guests a chance to live out their romantic comedy dreams. Real-life dating is so bleak, who wouldn’t want to spend a week in a fantasy rom-com world with your best friends?
At the resort, Julia literally falls into a not-quite-meet-cute involving an aggressive seagull and an adorably awkward guy named Luke who is also participating in the rom-com experience. Julia hides the fact she is there to do a story, but Luke harbors a few secrets of his own. Among further encounters with thieving seagulls, a gaggle of corgis, kisses in the rain, and even a karaoke serenade, their feelings deepen quickly. But could their love be real when they haven’t been honest about their true identities? Once the fantasy is over, can they have a relationship in the real world?
The Review:
This premise was so cool–a themed hotel based around romantic comedy tropes? Sign me up! The activities were so well thought out, and the atmosphere of this hotel was the best part of this book. If you’re a rom-com lover, you need to pick this book up for the setting alone! Obviously, there were tons of references to much-loved favorites.
The romance was sweet–I love couples that have a lot of awkwardness at first, because that’s kind of how I am in real life!
I loved Julia’s relationship with her friends. They were so funny and so well-written. I want a girl squad like that! I loved how they conspired to help Julia get the “real” hotel experience, and how they all helped each other when their hearts were broken. Strong friendships can really make a romance novel for me, and that was certainly the case in Too Good To Be Real.
QOTD: At this hotel, guests can pick a personalized moment to experience like one would in a rom-com. They range from grand gestures like getting serenaded, to meet-cutes like getting trapped in an elevator. What would you pick for your special rom-com moment?
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